Phlebotinum
by Lacey Peach
Summary: In which Sabretooth seeks out a name for her- Yes, "her" -Newly acquired pet.


_**A/N:**_ _This drabble is more or less my way of toeing the waters of creative writing, something I haven't done in quite some time, as I'm sure will be made obvious within this first chapter. There is no definitive beginning or end here, but rather, it starts from the middle and spreads outwards in both directions, giving me plenty of room to delve into this plotline for future attempts. Expect many bouts of ninja editing. The gender of all characters has been bent to my liking as well as a few more minor physical attributes here and there. These features have next to nothing to do with the plot; scratch them off as just some "I felt like it" reasoning, ya? Hopefully, this will stand as the first of many more similar works for me in the future. ..Or hopefully not. As the reader, you be the judge. :P_

_**Disclaimer:**_ _Although "creative liberties" have been taken advantage of,_ _I'm playing with characters that are not my own._

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><p>Another day had come and gone, the heat of a rather overbearing sun along with it. Although plenty of complaints could be shared in regards to the scorching hot mornings, the chilling wet nights weren't much better in comparison, bringing tireless rain and biting wind, snapping at two lone figures' faces in particular, flushed pink from the cold, their hair thrashed about wildly from the wind's overzealous play.<p>

Although certainly no pushover in any sense of the word, the clear leader of the duo had long grown tired of their constant marching. She did not enjoy extreme weather. She did not enjoy squelching through the mud and darkness. Her golden eyes were illuminated and slivered, her nose twitching at the many scents around her, most of them unpleasant in some way or another, a permanent scowl etched onto her features. Frankly, she had long grown bored of this. Coming to an indignant halt, she made this decision clear to her companion. It wasn't long before Victoria and her new found pet were settling down next to a purring (not roaring) fire in contentment.

Taking one long finalizing swig from their shared canteen, paying no mind to the liquid trickling down her chin, Victoria watched her company of one from the corner of her eye in ever growing contempt. The muttly creature stared back at her, or rather at the canteen and Victoria's bared throat, the water surely making its way down to her gullet, wet, slick, and refreshing. It licked its parched lips, repressing a whimper, the affects of dehydration leaving it panting and weak. Victoria was not at all blind to this. As a matter of fact, she enjoyed it, finding the pitiful display far more satisfying than the water she wasn't thirsty for. The corners of her lips twitched playfully as the lioness of a woman fought back a wicked grin.

A moment passed and Victoria found that she could stretch the time no longer. She finished off the last of the water with an exaggerated sigh of satisfaction. Eying the haggard little animal, her piercing yellow irises meeting blank ebony orbs, she shook the canteen playfully, "All gone!" she chirped like a mockingbird, then tossed the canteen to the side and dropped backward onto the ground silently, arms spread wide, stretching out lavishly atop the rain soaked earth as if it were no less than the softest, most luxurious of silk spun quilts.

The mutt was another story entirely, huddled into a shaking, sniveling, hunched over little ball, it could make itself no smaller. It did not at all demonstrate the same amount of comfort that its mistress did, but instead, it sat as close to the flames as it dare get, ears pricked for outside danger, eyes trained on its companion for the very same reason. Here, Victoria took this opportunity to give her pet another sneering, disapproving once over with her piercing cat-like eyes, as if the sorry state of affairs would somehow improve if only she looked it over in just the right amount of light.

It crouched before her, wide black orbs staring up at her from behind its greasy blond mop of unmanageable tangles, quivering with a distasteful mix of cold and fear. The mutt was small, dirty, and disgustingly underweight, as if taken right out of a tear jerking PETA advert. It whimpered under her gaze and Victoria couldn't help but huff and look away from her mistake. She really ought to know better than to take in a stray.

They lay there in silence for a while, the fatal female examining her blackened claws with feline-esque disinterest, head propped up, resting on her one forearm tucked behind her, all of it feigned due to her impeccable sense of show. They clicked together suddenly, causing the poor mutt to flinch and whine, effectively startled by the break in silence, even more so when Victoria leaped forward onto her front, sitting up in a dangerous crouch as if ready to pounce at any moment, all of this brought together in one swift predatory move. After all, she had well earned her alias Sabretooth; agile and fierce as any prehistoric cat could ever be imagined.

The mutt backed up unceremoniously, steadying itself on its haunches, prepared to dart away a fair distance if need be, its eyes never leaving those claws, so sharp that they could put razors to shame. The mutt's blackened chapped lips twitched and an odd sound crept from its mouth, the beast unsure of whether it should whimper for mercy or bare its sharp canines and growl. Either reaction was liable to earn it a swift beating for attitude, it could do no right.

This submissive behavior did not go unnoticed. Being a predator by nature, a bully by nurture, witnessing just how terrified the little mongrel was of her both delighted and irritated Victoria to no end. She sneered, caught between wanting to scare the meek little creature all the more, snatch it up by its shorthairs, tear its flesh from its very bones, then toss it into the fire for being so weak. There was no room in her life for weakness. If this mutt was to truly be her new pet and companion, she couldn't have such vulnerability skulking after her heels. That thought in mind, Victoria found herself promising herself to drop her new found burden off at the next town she came to, though even she couldn't convince herself of that lie. It's what she'd promised two, maybe three towns and a truck stop back or so.

Despite all threats and serious acts of violence, the mutt just wouldn't let up. Whatever its attraction to her presence was, Victoria figured it was as unshakable as whatever it was that prevented her from doing away with the mutt's life completely. She could feel a migraine coming on. Closing her eyes, she pushed herself upward suddenly, mindful of the dirt coating her precious claws, having sunk down into the wet earth from her weight. This didn't please her.. No, not one bit. The dirt would begrudgingly stick and serve as just another annoyance later on, to be picked out carefully. After all, Victoria was very particular about her claws.

Adjusting her stance ever so slightly, she clenched her fists tight at her sides, feeling those bodily weapons lengthen and draw blood from her palms, the tiny wounds healing just as quickly as they appeared. She breathed out through her nose, letting her impulses simmer down before reopening her golden orbs and shooting the mutt a fanged lipstick-stained grin. "So", her voice came out silky and purred, her whole attitude having seemingly changed into something far more welcoming and kind. At least, to those who didn't know any better.. "You got a name?" She almost sounded like she was really, truly interested. Almost.

Of course, the girl didn't respond. It- Or, rather, _she_ -Hadn't said so much as a word since Victoria found her. She figured the girl to be no older than fourteen, although given the obvious affects of malnutrition, her stomach indented and her bones jutting out at odd angles, the mutt could be well into womanhood for all she could tell. Years of starvation had a way of distorting a body, though seeing as the girl was obviously a mutant and a feral one at that, who could say if she'd even posses those signs, healthy body or not?

In any case, it wasn't as if the huntress was getting a clear answer any time soon. Victoria hadn't gotten so much as a word out of her pet since they found each other. Oh, she tried a number of languages. With her dirty blond hair and ivory skin, the girl presumably hailed from the Western hemisphere, and so Victoria focused on English, French, Russian, and what little Dutch she knew. Today she was once again trying her hand at English. After all, there was little else for her to amuse herself with.

"C'mon now", she coaxed, as if bargaining with no less than an animal. Perhaps it was demeaning, partly cruel considering what she'd been through only a few weeks prior, but it wasn't as if the dog-like teen had given her any reason to treat her otherwise. It had been months since they first met and the girl did little but whine and snarl. "You must have a name" the huntress insisted. Pressing on, "Maybe one ya even just gave yer'self..?" Tacked onto the end as an afterthought.

The girl shuffled, eying her quietly. She fidgeted slightly, having changed positions to sitting on her knees, mimicking Victoria's pose perfectly.

"An' none of that Wild Child bullshit they're writin' about you in the papers either" As if such a response was even likely. "I mean your name."

The canine-esque feral's eyes were blank and staring, though she began to mouth her mistress' words right along with her. In Victoria's opinion, that was progress, but not nearly enough to leave her satisfied. She wanted answers and it wasn't as if the mutt came with tags, as helpful as that might have been. She thought back to when she found the poor kid, huddled in her cell, sniveling and weak, hoping to recall something, anything.

"Is your name Kylie? I think I heard one of them lab coats call you Kylie.."

Just as soon as the name was uttered, Kylie's blank black eyes widened, ignited freshly with life and understanding. She perked up and bared her teeth- No, grinned -At Victoria, her anxious and hesitantly aggressive stance long gone, now pleasant and relieved just as any good dog would be under its mistress' full attention, her jagged teeth even parted, allowing her tongue to poke out the corner of her mouth ever so slightly.

Victoria, bemused by the comical display, couldn't help but grin, herself, enlarged canines catching on her bottom lip, glittering against the light of the flames as she allowed herself a harsh bark of laughter at the younger feral's expense. "Look at you, ya look ridiculous."

Kylie tilted her head, the cruel words and mocking laughter seemingly lost on the girl. She even breathed a small breath of an unsure chuckle, herself, large ears, pointed and almost elven in appearance, pricked noticeably against the tinkling whimsical sound of Victoria's laughter. Then, in one quick burst of energy, Kylie bounded up from her bare heels and covered the short distance from where she sat crouched, darted quick around the fire, and up against the lioness of a woman's form in something of a clumsy and affectionate hug, body pressed close against hers, tongue lolling out all the more in an attempt to lick her mistress' face.

Victoria acted just as quickly. Matching her pace, right as Kylie was up and moving, Victoria's amusement abruptly ran dry. Her eyes flashed, her pupil's narrowing to slits, claws out and ready to put the petulant pup back into her rightful place, under Victoria's boot. Of course, no amount of raw strength and murderous skill could have prepared her for such a revolting attack on her personal space and comfort zone; Kylie's diminutive form pressed against her own sleek and well toned body, practically upon her lap, wet and unsettlingly long tongue lapping wildly at her chin and mouth.

It was enough to make the huntress yowl with surprise and indignation. All this took place in a matter of seconds before Victoria lashed out, seizing the muttly creature by her throat, claws stabbing into the soft flesh and drawing blood, then slammed the girl backwards onto the earth, knocking the wind out of her, leaving Kylie gasping breathlessly, Victoria's firm grasp tightening all the more until the smaller feral was choking and clawing at her hand uselessly.

Victoria snarled and pushed the girl deep into the ground even harder, leaning forward and glaring daggers into her eyes as terrifying as death itself. "I could kill ya, girl, right here and now Nobody could stop me and nobody would even care to try. Ya know that, doncha?"

Kylie stared up at her, wide eyed and petrified, her mouth opening and closing, but no words came out.

Victoria studied her, mocking grin returning. "I could, but I wont." She released her and moved away, grin returning, looking so natural, one could hardly believe it ever left her face. her smile was impish and wide, as if she'd just told a particularly clever joke. "You try anything like that again and I might not be so forgiving."

The girl didn't respond, she just sat up and rubbed her sore neck quietly, her gaze never once traveling any higher than the dirt.

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